Most businesses, government agencies, schools and other organizations employ dedicated communications systems (also referred to as “networks”) that enable computers, servers, printers, facsimile machines, telephones and the like to communicate with each other, through a private network, and with remote locations via a telecommunications service provider. Such communications system may be hard-wired through, for example, the walls and/or ceilings of a building using communications cables and connectors. Communications cables that contain eight insulated conductors such as copper wires that are arranged as four differential twisted pairs of conductors (herein “Ethernet cables”) and/or fiber optic communications cables are typically used in these hard-wired communications systems. Individual communications connectors (which are also referred to herein as “connector ports”) such as RJ-45 style modular wall jacks are mounted in offices, conference rooms and other work areas throughout the building. The communications cables and any intervening connectors provide communications paths from the connector ports (e.g., modular wall jacks) in offices and other rooms, hallways and common areas of the building to network equipment (e.g., network switches, servers, memory storage devices, etc.) that may be located in a computer room, telecommunications closet or the like. Communications cables from external telecommunication service providers may also terminate within the computer room or telecommunications closet.
A commercial data center is a facility that may be used to run the computer-based applications that handle the core electronic business and operational data of one or more organizations. The expansion of the Internet has also led to a growing need for a so-called “Internet data centers,” which are data centers that are used by online retailers, Internet portals, search engine companies and the like to provide large numbers of users simultaneous, secure, high-speed, fail-safe access to their web sites. Both types of data centers may host hundreds, thousands or more servers, routers, memory storage systems and other associated equipment. In these data centers, fiber optic and/or Ethernet cables are typically used to provide a hard-wired communications system that interconnects the data center equipment.
In both office network and data center communications systems, the communications cables that are connected to end devices (e.g., network servers, memory storage devices, network switches, work area computers, printers, facsimile machines, telephones, etc.) may terminate into one or more communications patching systems that may simplify later connectivity changes. Typically, a communications patching system includes one or more “patch panels” that are mounted on equipment rack(s) or in cabinet(s), and a plurality of “patch cords” that are used to make interconnections between different pieces of equipment. As is known to those of skill in the art, a “patch cord” refers to a communications cable (e.g., an Ethernet cable or a fiber optic cable) that has a connector such as, for example, an RJ-45 plug or a fiber optic connector, on at least one end thereof. A “patch panel” refers to an inter-connection device that includes a plurality of connector ports. Each connector port (e.g., an RJ-45 jack or a fiber optic adapter) on a patch panel may have a plug aperture on a front side thereof that is configured to receive the connector of a patch cord, and the back end of each connector port may likewise include a plug aperture that is configured to receive a patch cord or, alternatively, may be configured to receive the individual transmission paths (e.g., copper wires or optical fibers) of a communications cable that does not include a plug connector. Each connector port on a patch panel acts to connect the one or more transmission paths of the cable/patch cord that is plugged into the front side of the connector port with respective corresponding transmission paths of the cable/patch cord that is terminated into the back end of the connector port. The patching system may optionally include a variety of additional equipment such as rack managers, system managers and other devices that facilitate making and/or tracking patching connections.
So called “horizontal” cables are typically used to connect work area outlets or data center end devices to the back end of respective connector ports on a first set of patch panels. In an “inter-connect” patching system, a single set of patch cords is used to directly connect the connector ports on the first set of patch panels to respective connector ports on network switches. In a “cross-connect” patching system, a second set of patch panels is provided, and the first set of patch cords is used to connect the connector ports on the first set of patch panels to respective connector ports on the second set of patch panels, and a second set of patch cords is used to connect the connector ports on the second set of patch panels to respective connector ports on the network switches.
The connections between the work area end devices and the network switches and the connections in a data center may need to be changed for a variety of reasons, including equipment changes, adding or deleting users, office moves, etc. In an inter-connect patching system, these connections are typically changed by rearranging the patch cords in the set of patch cords that run between the first set of patch panels and the network switches. In a cross-connect patching system, the connections between the work area end devices and the network switches are typically changed by rearranging the patch cords in the set of patch cords that run between the first set of patch panels and the second set of patch panels. Both types of patching systems allow a network manager to easily implement connectivity changes by simply unplugging one end of a patch cord from a first connector port on one of the patch panels in the first set of patch panels and then plugging that end of the patch cord into a second connector port on one of the patch panels in the first set of patch panels.
The end-to-end connectivity between the connector ports on the network switches and the work area outlets or end devices are typically recorded in a computer-based log. Each time patching changes are made, this computer-based log is updated to reflect the new patching connections. Unfortunately, in practice technicians may neglect to update the log each and every time a change is made, and/or may make errors in logging changes. As such, the logs may not be complete and/or accurate.
In order to reduce or eliminate such logging errors, a variety of systems have been proposed that automatically log the patch cord connections in a communications patching system (i.e., to automatically determine which connector ports in the communications system are connected by patch cords). These automated patching systems typically use special “intelligent” patch panels that employ sensors, radio frequency identification tags, serial ID chips and the like and/or special patch cords that include an additional conductor and/or integrated circuit chips in the plugs thereof that are used in automatically tracking patching connections. However, existing solutions may be expensive, require the use of customized equipment, or may not work with all types of communications patching systems.